Business Systems Analyst Intermediate

University Of Michigan; Ann Arbor (MI); Hybrid; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

The Rackham Graduate School at the University of Michigan seeks a Business Systems Analyst (BSA) at the Intermediate level to drive the functional analysis for our Slate implementation.

This term-limited, three-year role acts as the core liaison between academic programs, central admissions, our internal IT team, and the external vendor, overseeing requirements, UAT, data governance, and reporting with a hybrid on-site/remote schedule.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Three or more years of experience as a business systems analyst, business analyst, functional analyst, or similar role.
• Experience gathering and documenting business requirements, mapping business processes, supporting system implementation or enhancement projects, coordinating user acceptance testing, and translating business needs into functional or technical specifications.
• Strong analytical, organizational, facilitation, verbal, and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work with diverse stakeholders, build consensus, manage multiple priorities, and handle sensitive student or institutional data in accordance with university policy and FERPA requirements.

Responsibilities

• Map disparate business processes and document requirements for Slate implementation.
• Translate business needs into functional requirements, user stories, and test scenarios.
• Coordinate UAT, manage test scripts, and track defects with external vendor.
• Ensure data governance and proper mapping between Slate and SIS systems.
• Act as liaison among academic programs, central admissions, IT, and vendor.

Skills

Business analysis

Requirements gathering

Stakeholder collaboration

Process mapping

Analytical skills

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Technolutions Slate

UAT testing

System integrations

Job description

Job Summary

The Rackham Graduate School seeks a Business Systems Analyst Intermediate to serve as a member of the Rackham Information Technology team.

The Rackham Graduate School is seeking a highly collaborative and analytical Business Systems Analyst (BSA) at the Intermediate level to serve as the core functional BSA for our upcoming institutional implementation of Technolutions Slate . PLEASE NOTE: This is a three-year term-limited position supporting the implementation of Rackham's graduate admissions system in Slate. While the initial appointment is term-limited, continuation beyond the term period may be considered based on business needs, available funding, and organizational priorities.

Rackham operates in a complex, decentralized environment where individual graduate programs perform independent applicant evaluations and return recommendations to the central Graduate School for final verification. As a Rackham BSA, you will serve as a vital bridge between academic departments, central Rackham admissions, internal technical SMEs, and our external implementationpartner. You will be responsible for mapping disparate business processes, defining system requirements, and ensuring that the Slate configuration successfully balances departmental autonomy with central compliance and data integrity. You will be responsible for identifying and documenting unique program admissions application evaluation requirements to be included in the design and build of Slate; seeking evaluation standardization where possible. You will become skilled in the Rackham graduate admissions processes and provide recommendations for business process improvements.

PLEASE NOTE: Rackham is currently offering hybrid work schedules to staff, requiring 2-3 days per week on-site with the remaining time being remote.

Business Process Mapping & Requirements Gathering (40%)

• Facilitate discovery sessions with decentralized graduate programs and central administrative stakeholders to document current-state and future-state admissions, evaluation, communications, and recommendation workflows.
• Translate business needs into clear functional requirements, user stories, acceptance criteria, process maps, and implementation documentation.
• Identify operational inefficiencies and recommend scalable process improvements that support institutional standards while recognizing program-specific needs.
• Ensure appropriate handling of student and applicant data in accordance with university policies, FERPA, data governance standards, and information security expectations.
• Partner closely with the external implementation vendor to monitor project scope, ensure configuration aligns with business requirements, and represent Rackham's operational interests.
• Coordinate and execute comprehensive User Acceptance Testing (UAT), including writing test scripts and managing bug tracking for complex Reader workflows, applicant portals, and data feeds.
• Validate that downstream integrations with our Student Information System (SIS), Perceptive Content (document imaging), and Nelnet (payment processing) meet all functional business rules.

Change Management & Departmental Consultation (20%)

• Serve as a change management advocate, guiding academic programs through the cultural and operational shifts of moving to Slate.
• Collaborate with Admissions SMEs to design standard operating procedures (SOPs) and policy documentation for centralized and decentralized users.
• Facilitate stakeholder alignment when departmental requests conflict with central Graduate School requirements or system limitations.

Data Governance & Reporting Support (10%)

• Partner with the technical team to ensure data integrity and proper mapping between Slate data fields and the institutional SIS.
• Analyze complex data structures to help define reporting requirements for academic programs and central administration.
• Create operational, management, and leadership reports to support business processes.
• Ensure appropriate stewardship of applicant and student data in accordance with university policies and FERPA.

Required Qualifications*

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Three or more years of experience as a business systems analyst, business analyst, functional analyst, or similar role supporting enterprise, administrative, CRM, student, admissions, or workflow systems.
• Experience gathering and documenting business requirements, mapping business processes, supporting system implementation or enhancement projects, coordinating user acceptance testing, and translating business needs into functional or technical specifications.
• Strong analytical, organizational, facilitation, verbal, and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work with diverse stakeholders, build consensus, manage multiple priorities, and handle sensitive student or institutional data in accordance with university policy and FERPA requirements.

Desired Qualifications*

• Prior experience with a Technolutions Slate implementation, or deep functional familiarity with Slate modules (Reader, Portals, Queries).
• Experience in higher education, graduate admissions, enrollment management, student services, or academic administration.
• Familiarity with data mapping, reporting requirements, integrations, data governance, and process improvement.
• Experience working with external implementation partners or vendors.
• Experience creating SOPs, training materials, test scripts, and user support documentation.
• Certification or training in business analysis, project management, process improvement, Agile/Scrum, or change management, such as CBAP, CCBA, PMP, Prosci, or Lean.

Why Work at Michigan?

Being part of something greater, of serving a larger mission of discovery and care- that's the heart of what drives people to work at Michigan. In some way, great or small, every person here helps to advance this world-class institution. It's adding a purpose to your profession. Work at Michigan and become a victor for the greater good.

In addition to a career filled with purpose and opportunity, The University of Michigan offers a comprehensive benefits package to help you stay well, protect yourself and your family and plan for a secure future. Benefits include:

• Generous time off
• A retirement plan that provides two-for-one matching contributions with immediate vesting
• Many choices for comprehensive health insurance
• Life insurance
• Long-term disability coverage
• Flexible spending accounts for healthcare and dependent care expenses

Modes of Work

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes .

U-M EEO Statement

The University of Michigan is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.